


Leaving Tennessee

by Mignon3tte



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Bones Backstory, Gen, Minor Original Character(s), Trans!bones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:48:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28374903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mignon3tte/pseuds/Mignon3tte
Summary: Where did Bones come from? It turns out Ash isn't the only country bumpkin in the Lynx gang.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	Leaving Tennessee

**Author's Note:**

> A short story I originally made for a creative writing class. Hope you like and thanks for reading!

A heavy hand clamped down on his shoulder. A shiver ran down his spine, cold and sharp. Instantly, thoughts of what danger could be awaiting him flashed through his mind. He thought about what he had packed, what he was wearing, where he was. Surely he was prepared, right? He whirled around, and his eyes focused on a familiar face.

“Jason,” he said incredulously. The owner of the heavy hand curled his lips into an awkward smile that didn’t meet his eyes.

“What are you doin’ out here so late, Bones? It’s nearly midnight,” Jason said.

“I could say the same for you,” Bones said. “Don’t you have school tomorrow?”

Jason shrugged. “I was plannin’ on ditching anyway.”

He sniffled and looked like he was about to spit, but changed his mind at the last minute. Bones shifted uncomfortably and then reached up to pry Jason’s hand off of his shoulder. Jason seemed to get the picture and removed his hand, choosing to rub the back of his neck.

He noticed the backpack on Bones’ shoulders and said, “Where are you off to?”

Bones looked down at his feet. “I’m leaving here, Jason.”

Jason blanched. “What? Why?”

“You know damn well why I’m leavin’,” Bones said. “They don’t want me here no more anyway.”

Jason opened his mouth, and then closed it. He ran a hand through his hair and then down his face.

“Of course they want you here,” he said.

“They want me dead, Jason. Some of them wanna burn me like a witch,” Bones said, his voice wet and shaking.

Jason sighed. “Shelby-,”

“You can’t even get my name right!”

Jason was silent. He looked down at Bones, taking notice of the faint freckles dusted over his nose, and how his strawberry blond hair shone golden under the flickering street light. Then, he looked away. A silver pick-up truck turned the corner and ambled their way. Its engine rumbled loudly, and as it got closer, the country music playing on its radio could be heard. It passed by the movie store, and then the theater with its pink and purple neon sign, and then past them on the sidewalk. The smell of diesel fuel lingered behind it, pungent and burnt. For a moment, the nighttime air that was normally sweet with the smell of corn and wheat grass became the air of the big city. The truck slowed to a stop at an intersection, and then turned a corner, disappearing out of sight. The town was quiet again.

Jason took a breath. “Where will you go?”

Bones, whose gaze had drifted to a tree behind Jason, looked up again. “I’m goin’ to New York.”

“New York? You’ve never been anywhere outside Tennessee,” Jason said, surprised.

“You promise not to tell nobody?”

Jason stuttered and then bit his tongue. Just when he thought he was starting to understand her—or him, or whoever—she goes and throws him for a loop again.

He sighed. “Okay, I promise.”

Bones’ eyes lit up. “Thanks, Jason.”

“Will you at least let me walk you to the station?”

“Sure.”

They walked in companionable silence, the only sound echoing off the buildings was the worn sidewalk beneath their feet. Everyone was asleep but them.

“Without you here, I’ll be the skinniest kid in town. Everybody’s gonna start calling _me_ Bones,” Jason said with a laugh.

“Well good, now you’ll know how it feels,” Bones said. He gave Jason a playful shove. They rounded a corner and the bus station came into view. They both stopped.

“Well…” Bones said, and then trailed off. He lifted the backpack straps further up onto his shoulders. He tried again, “Well, I guess this is goodbye.”

Jason blinked. “Yeah,” he said. He was silent for a moment. “I guess I really can’t stop you then, huh?”

Bones looked down at his shoes. “No, you can’t.” He turned around, facing the bus station.

“Alright, then. Goodbye Shelby,” Jason said.

Bones flinched at the name, his mind told him to turn around, to correct his old friend, but his heart told him to let it go. And so he did. He shook his head softly and walked into the bus station.

The air in the station was ripe and humid. The smell of plastic chairs and lingering crowds made him scrunch up his nose. He took the nearest seat, blue and scratched and chewed up at the edges, and sat down. He pulled out his ticket from his pocket and unfolded it. It was still there, still under his name, still a one-way trip to New York City. It was still real, he was still leaving.

An old couple bundled up in too many coats for the season sat in the corner, chatting about the logistics of bus travel as they pointed at places on a map. A peculiar feeling of emptiness settled in his chest. For the first time in his life, he would have no friends, no family, no neighbors to rely on; just himself. He was a blank canvas, and at 12:15am, he would be leaving Shelby behind.


End file.
